Smokey Creamy BBQ Aubergine Pasta

It’s been a bit of a crazy couple of weeks between two days of funeral services for my dear guardian, then a weekend away for a wedding a day later, then the next day flying over to Portugal early in the morning. We arrived home on Tuesday, after an awfully long and uncomfortable journey full of delays and still don’t feel rested.

But, to keep things feeling as normal as possible I’m going to share with you an amazing recipe for a Smoky Creamy BBQ Aubergine Pasta, inspired by August’s Degustabox. Each month I receive a box chock full of goodies, from ingredients to convenient sauces and beverages to try, all for a bargain price.

This month had a fine balance of all, here’s the vegan friendly products it included;

The star of the month and of this recipe was the Tabasco Sweet & Sticky Barbecue Sauce & Marinade. It adds richness, smokiness, subtle sweetness and gentle spice that makes this comforting pasta, out-of-this world delicious! Plus, the sauce comes together in a flash using a high speed blender. You could also try using a food processor.

Make this gluten free by using gluten free pasta and BBQ sauce!

Ingredients:

Serves 4

1 large white or purple aubergine/eggplant

2 large flat mushrooms

500g pasta

1 400g tin tomatoes

1 tin full unsweetened soya milk

1 medium onion, peeled and quartered

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp dried parsley

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp Italian mixed herbs

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 cup Tabasco BBQ Sauce

14 cashews

Method:

Take a large saucepan and a large frying pan or wok. Place the large saucepan filled with salted water on to boil whilst you prepare the vegetables and place the frying pan onto a medium heat.

Cube the aubergine and slice the mushrooms, add to the hot frying pan with a little cooking spray or a couple of tablespoons of water and stir fry until softened and golden.

Meanwhile, add the sauce ingredients from tomatoes to cashews into a blender jar and blend on high until smooth and creamy. Add to the pan with the vegetables and leave to simmer on a low-medium heat while you cook the pasta.